Intelligent casino management system and method for managing real-time networked interactive gaming systems

ABSTRACT

A system and method for intelligent management of an interactive gaming system and casino games played by both local and remote players is described. The present invention tracks the play of local and remote players and dealers, provides a real-time inventory of wagers and players stakes, and provides casino management and regulators visibility of real-time play throughout the casino. The present invention also enables casinos to identify and reward loyal players regardless of whether the player is on-site or remote or playing a table game or a slot machine.

(1) PRIORITY APPLICATION

[0001] This application claims priority under pending Provisional patentapplication Ser. No. 06/301,939 filed Jun. 29, 2001 entitled IntelligentCasino Management System and Method for Managing Real-Time NetworkedInteractive Gaming System, the disclosure of which is incorporatedherein for all purposes.

(2) RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application relates to U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/782,833 filed Feb. 14, 2001 and U.S. Provisional Patent Applicationserial No. 60/283,807 filed Apr. 13, 2001 (both of which are assigned toVT TECH Corp., the assignee of the present invention) the disclosures ofwhich are incorporated herein for all purposes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] 1 . Field of the Invention

[0004] The present invention relates to a system and method forintelligent management of remote and local gaming played at a casino andmore specifically a method and system for managing the play of bothremote and local players participating in a casino game.

[0005] 2 .Background

[0006] Casino games, often referred to as games of chance, are a popularform of adult entertainment. While such games have been played forcenturies, playing casino games over the Internet is a relatively recentphenomenon. Indeed a recent report indicates that more than 1,200“on-line” casinos attract a large number of players who are unable totravel to a physical casino to play their desired casino game on-site.These Internet casinos comprise one or more computers that executecomputer software replicating a casino game for remote players. Forexample, the computer software could replicate the game of roulette,baccarat, craps, blackjack or pai gow (an Asian poker game) depending onwhat each player desires to play. Thus, when the player requests toplay, the player is playing one-on-one against a computer program.

[0007] While software generated casino games may closely replicate theodds of winning, many players would prefer to play at an actual casino.For this reason, an interactive gaming system (IGS) was described inU.S. Pat. No. 5,762,552, assigned to VT TECH Corp., the assignee of thepresent invention. This IGS permits remote players to participate inlive action games of chance. By way of example, a remote player selectsa game server, which may be a table game located on the floor of acasino. A game server in the IGS environment may either be a card tablewith a live dealer or banker, a craps table or a roulette table thatpermits players to place a wager on either the table or a virtual betboard. Alternatively, the game server may be a computer program thatgenerates a sequence of plays of the selected game of a chance with theresults conveyed to a plurality of players, many of whom may be playingat a position remote from the casino. The IGS transmits a broadcastquality signal to the remote player to monitor play at the selectedtable. The IGS is particularly well suited to games of chance such asbaccarat, roulette and craps where a virtually unlimited number ofplayers may place electronic bets on a virtual bet board with theoutcome determined by the cards opened on the baccarat table, the playof the roulette wheel or the roll of the die on the crap table.Advantageously, the baccarat table, the roulette wheel and the crapstable are all located on the casino floor, so the remote player isprovided with the same game just as if they were at the gaming table inthe casino. The IGS is also well suited for other games of chance, suchas a slot machine or for other card games such as blackjack or poker, byway of example.

[0008] For casino card games, such as black jack, Pai gow poker, poker,craps and others, it is necessary to detect certain intermediateresults. However, when cards are dealt face down, it is difficult todetermine the value of the cards for remote players. Accordingly, asystem for detecting the value of a gaming object (for example, thevalue of a card, the value of a die) was described in a related U.S.patent application Ser. No. 09/782,833 filed Feb. 14, 2001 thedisclosure of which is incorporated herein for all purposes. Thisapplication is also assigned to VT TECH Corp., the assignee of thepresent invention.

[0009] The automatic detection of both intermediate and final outcome ofthe game eliminates the need for a casino employee to view the resultand manually enter the value into the IGS for distribution to remoteplayers. Automatic detection also enables a large number of remoteplayers to participate in a casino game conducted at a casino with liveplayers. However, what is needed is an improved system and method tomonitor the play of the large numbers of remote and local playerswithout disrupting the game's results or rate of play.

[0010] In addition to automatic detection of game results, casinos mustalso be able to monitor play of both local and remote players. As usedherein, local players are players who are physically present at a gameserver while remote players are players who participate from a locationremote from the game server. What is needed is a system and method thatenables automatic detection of gaming objects (chips, cards, dices,roulette balls, by way of example), the value of wagers placed by bothlocal and remote players and that associates wagering information withspecific players, dealers and other casino employees.

[0011] As will be appreciated by one familiar with the operation of acasino, casino management is interested in identifying players whogenerate the most profit for the casino. To obtain this information,casinos typically employ a pit boss to monitor the size of the bet thateach player is making. However, it is not possible for the pit boss toaccurately determine the size of the bets and the duration of play foreach and every player. Accordingly, what is further needed is anintelligent automated management system that automatically tracks theplay of both local and remote players. Further the intelligentmanagement system needs to maximize utilization of casino resources,minimize management time and cost, improve reliability and quality ofservice, make available valuable data for improving gaming and gamingbusiness strategy and customer service. What is also needed is a systemand method for gaming service and management that is scalable and securethat provides the casino management with a real-time data indicative ofthe operation of the casino.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0012] The present invention relates to a system and method forintelligent management of an interactive gaming system and casino gamesplayed by local and remote players. The present invention tracks theplay of players, both local and remote, and dealers, provides areal-time inventory of casino chips and players stakes, and providescasino management and regulators visibility of real-time play throughoutthe casino. The present invention enables casinos to identify and rewardloyal players regardless of whether the player is on-site or remote.

[0013] In one preferred embodiment, the intelligent casino managementsystem of the present invention comprises a plurality of smart tables, aplurality of table controllers that interface the smart tables to alocal (wireless or wireline) network, and a gaming network manager fordata collection. The smart tables comprise a plurality of tables eachconfigured for play of one of a variety of casino games and adapted forboth local and remote play of both live or virtual casino games.Typically, each smart table includes the familiar bet board for one of avariety of different casino games and at least one detector fordetecting the value of each gaming object on the table. Gaming objectson a smart table may include: (i) the game generation object forgenerating game result, e.g. playing cards, roulette ball, or dice; (ii)the chips in the dealer's tray, (iii) the chips for each player's betand accumulated chips maintained by each player. Each gaming objectprovides a unique value that, upon detection, is communicated to thetable controller. One preferred non-contact method of gaming objectdetection is disclosed in a related U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/782,833 (filed Feb. 14, 2001), and assigned to VT TECH Corp., theassignee of the present invention, the disclosure of which isincorporated herein for all purposes.

[0014] Gaming objects will vary depending on the selected casino game.For example, if the casino game is a casino card game, the gamingobjects comprise a deck of cards having 54 unique values. If the casinogame requires dice, as in the craps game, the gaming object comprisesthe dice. Each die has six unique values corresponding to the six sidesof die. If the casino game is roulette, the gaming generation object isthe steel, ceramic or plastic ball whose position on the roulette wheelwill determine one of the 38 (or 37) values. Each gaming object isadapted to generate at least one unique signal that is detected by adetector (e.g. non-contact reader) that relays the signal to the smarttable controller.

[0015] The table controller is responsible for transmitting detectedvalues to 1) the network manager over the casino local network, 2) agame result display, 3) a local table monitor display and/or 4) a pitmonitor display configured to monitor a group of smart tables. The localtable monitor allows the dealer to verify the correct amount of chipcollection and payout for each player for each game. The pit monitorenables the pit boss to automatically monitor all gaming activities inthe pit, including instantaneous tracking and rating of all players,correct play of the game by the dealers and the instantaneous amountsand the statistics of wins and losses at each table in a pit.

[0016] The present invention detects the value of gaming objects at eachtable or game server during play of each game. The present inventionalso tracks the manner and rate of play for each player, tracks theefficiency of each dealer, verifies the correct calculation of payouts,maintains chip inventory, and enables a higher degree of real-timeoperational management (by way of example, cash management and resourcemanagement) throughout the casino. The tracking and management systemadvantageously enables interactive gaming for an unlimited number ofplayers without degrading the rate of play or increasing errors bycasino employees. Advantageously, with the present invention, it ispossible to implement the use of casino-based proxies for remote playersin the manner described in pending U.S. Provisional Application SerialNo. 60/283,807 filed Apr. 13, 2001 now pending U.S. non-provisionalapplication Serial No. 10/121,621 filed Apr. 11, 2002. Further, with thepresent invention, the casino operator may load balance, that isdistribute remote players among the available tables and also todistribute the average amount wagered so that new players are assignedto tables having a low average wager for each of the previous “n” games.

[0017] The system and method of the present invention integrates themanagement of internal functions relating to operation of a casinoencompassing both real-time interactive gaming and traditional gamingbusiness.

[0018] Advantageously, the present invention enables the efficient,reliable and secure management of a casino's operation thereby savingcosts and increasing revenue. Further, the present invention allowsreduction in overhead and maximizes the utilization of the gamingresources resulting in improved customer service. Further still, thepresent invention expands potential marketing strategies based on thehigher degree of visibility afforded by the information generated byplay by local and remote players. The casino management system andmethod of the present invention is more clearly described in thefollowing detailed description of a preferred embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019]FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of one embodiment of an exemplaryprior art computer-based networked system for practicing the invention.

[0020]FIG. 2 illustrates a top view of a gaming table in accordance withthe present invention.

[0021]FIG. 3 illustrates a user console associated with the gaming tableof FIG. 2.

[0022]FIG. 4 illustrates one embodiment of a table controller associatedwith the smart gaming table of FIG. 2 and coupled to a plurality ofnon-contact readers

[0023]FIG. 5 illustrates a method for monitoring the play of a player ofa casino game.

[0024]FIG. 6 illustrates one embodiment of an intelligent casinomanagement network system architecture.

[0025]FIG. 7 illustrates one embodiment of shared memory configuration.

[0026]FIG. 8 illustrates a three-level casino management network systemarchitecture in accordance with the present invention.

[0027]FIGS. 9A and 9B illustrates one embodiment of a database andnetwork map, respectively, associated with the casino networkenvironment for monitoring play of a plurality of casino games by aplurality of players.

[0028]FIG. 10 illustrates an operational flow diagram for play of acasino game in the casino network environment of the present invention.

[0029]FIG. 11 illustrates an operational flow diagram for the tablecontroller.

[0030]FIG. 12 illustrates an operational flow diagram for operation ofthe pit manager and floor manager.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0031] The present invention relates to a system for enabling remoteplay of a live action casino game. More particularly, the presentinvention relates to an improved gaming table that incorporates aplurality of gaming objects in a manner that enables an unlimited numberof players to participate in a live action casino game. In the followingdescription of the preferred embodiment, reference is made to theaccompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which is shown byway of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may bepracticed. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilizedand that changes may be made without departing from the scope of thepresent invention.

[0032] Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodimentsof the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be usedthroughout in the drawings to refer to the same or like components.

[0033]FIG. 1 illustrates the hardware components of an exemplarycomputer-based networked system 110 for practicing the invention. In oneembodiment, the present invention comprises a plurality of smart gamingtables 112 at a first casino 114. At each table 112, a sequence of playsof a particular casino game is conducted. Each table 112 is connected toa local area network 116. A plurality of gaming machines 118 is alsoconnected to network 116. By selecting one of said plurality of tables112, a remote player (not shown) positioned at one of the gamingmachines 118 can participate in the play of the casino game conducted atthe selected table. Other players may play while physically present atthe smart table. Such players are referred to herein as local players.Thus, at any smart table, there may be both remote local players playingthe game of chance. In some embodiments, the number of players at eachsmart table 112 may far exceed the number of seats or player positionsaround the table A network manager 120 is also connected to network 116.Network manager 120 acts as a portal to a public or private network 122,which may be a telephone, satellite or Internet network or any otherworldwide communication network. Additional casinos or gaming sites,such as casino 124, may be coupled to network 122 via network manager126. Casino 124 is essentially a mirror image of casino 114 in that itcomprises a plurality of gaming tables 128 and gaming machines 130 eachof which are coupled by a local area network 132 to network manager 126.Gaming machines 130 are identical to gaming machines 118 except thatthey is located at a site remote from casino 114. Similarly, gamingtables 128 are identical to gaming tables 112 except that they too arelocated at a different site. Additional gaming machines 134 may coupleinto either casino 114 or 124 directly through the network 122. Gamingmachines 134 may be, by way of example, web enabled cell phones, home orportable computers or other such devices. Since such devices aretypically mobile and outside the control of a casino, it is preferredthat gaming machines 134 include circuitry such as global positioningsystem (GPS). With GPS, the casino may interrogate gaming machines 134to determine the location of the gaming machine so that the casinos maylimit remote access to the casino to those jurisdictions where such playis legal.

[0034] Referring now to FIG. 2, a top view of a smart gaming table 112is illustrated The smart gaming table system 112 and gaming objects aredescribed more fully described in a related U.S. patent application Ser.No. 09/782,833 (filed Feb. 14, 2001), and assigned to VT TECH Corp., theassignee of the present invention, the disclosure of which isincorporated herein for all purposes.

[0035] Table 112 comprises a flat playing surface covered with felt onwhich is typically printed a bet board for a particular game. Theprinted felt could delineate where the cards are dealt and where thebets are positioned. Typically there are a total of six playingpositions 202 if the table is used for blackjack or pai gow poker and adealer position 204. Other card games may have more or fewer playingpositions or may omit the dealer's position. Associated with eachplaying position 202 is a bet slot 206 where a player may place a betfor the next to occur casino game. Also associated is a defined position208 where the cards are dealt.

[0036] At each playing position 202, a reader 210 is coupled to table112 closely proximate to at least one of the playing positions 202. Inthe illustrated embodiment, each playing position 202 is provided with areader 210 although it has been eliminated from one position in FIG. 2so as to more clearly illustrate additional features of each position202. One skilled in the art will appreciate that each table may have anynumber of playing positions 202 and is not limited to merely the sixpositions 202 that are illustrated.

[0037] Each reader 210 is configured to have a relatively short range asindicated by the dashed lines 212 surrounding each player position 202.Again, the range indicator has been omitted from two positions to moreclearly illustrate the reader and other features at these positions.

[0038] Table 112 also includes a reader 214 positioned proximate to thedealer position 204 and more particularly proximate to the definedposition 216 where the dealer's cards are initially positioned. As withreaders 210, readers 214 are configured with a relatively short range,as indicated by dashed lines 218 so that there is no overlap indetection field with the other readers. It will be further appreciatedthat a single reader 214 may be positioned proximate to a card shoe todetect the value of each card as it is dealt. This configuration isparticularly useful for card games such as baccarat because readers 210need not necessarily be accessed.

[0039] Each table 112 includes a reader network 220 that couples a tablemanager 222 to each of the readers. Specifically, each reader 210 and214 is coupled to reader network 220 so that information from readers210 and 214 may be transferred to table manager 222. Table manager 222is responsible for coupling reader network 220 to a local area network(LAN) 224. Table manager 222 is the local manager responsible forlinking and managing access to the network manager 120 (FIG. 1) via LAN224.

[0040] Table 112 further comprises in one embodiment a chip tray 230proximate to the dealer's position 204. The chip tray 230 is coupled toreader network 220 such that the total number of chips in the tray maybe counted and the value transmitted to a monitoring server coupled toLAN 224.

[0041] Gaming objects will vary depending on the selected casino game.For example, if the casino game is a casino card game, the gaming objectis a deck of cards having 54 unique values. If the casino game requiresdice as in the craps game, the gaming object comprise the dice, eachhaving six unique values corresponding to the six sides of die. If thecasino game is roulette, the gaming generation object is the steel orplastic ball whose position on the roulette wheel will determine one ofthe 38 (or 37) values. Each gaming object is adapted to generate atleast one unique signal that may be detected by readers 210 or 214.

[0042] It is to be understood that the smart table 112 may be useful toa local player (one who is playing on-site) who is not otherwisecomfortable with playing a live action card game, roulette or craps.Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 3 and as an aid to such players who arephysically present at the gaming table 112, each playing position 202includes not only a bet slot 206, defined position 208 for the cards andat least one reader having a reading range indicated by dashed lines 302but also a user console 304. In this manner, even though physicallypresent at the gaming table, the casino may treat the player as a“remote” player with the player's hand and bets determined automaticallyby the casino. Advantageously, the smart playing position can displayinstructions to teach players how to play a casino game, increase therate of play by suggesting possible strategies or implement casinomanagement functions such as the display of casino advertising,discounts to shows or game statistics.

[0043] User console 304 may be a LCD display having a touch sensitivescreen for entry of information by the local player. Alternatively userconsole 304 may be an array of LEDs, a CRT or other display devicetogether with an optional keyboard 306 When cards or other gamingobjects are positioned in defined position 208 with a bet positioned inbet slot 206, the results, such as the value of the cards in position208, may be obtained from table manager 222. Thus, a local player mayobtain visual confirmation of the value of their cards and their betfrom the user console. The dealer may also receive determinations orinstructions from the remote players on user console associated with thedealer's position. The determination, collection and pay-off areautomatic for remote players thereby relieving the casino employees fromhaving to manually settle their wagers.

[0044] The present invention provides additional significant benefitsfor operators of a casino. Specifically, the ability to automaticallydetermine the value of a stack of chips, tokens or playing card enablesthe automatic counting of all bets played at a gaming table withinstantaneous monitoring of the play at the gaming table via the IGS.The present invention also enables the broadcast of a casino game andthe outcome for each player and the dealer via the IGS without requiringthe dealer to assume additional tasks during play. The present inventioncontributes to detecting counterfeit cards or chips and minimizesmistakes in calculating the value of the outcome of a casino game or theproper payoff of a wager. Because the gaming object includes a memoryarea in the embedded semiconductor circuit, it can be reprogrammed andencrypted by the casino to thwart counterfeiters or cheats. Finally, useof the gaming objects enables an automated audit trail for both dealerand players at the gaming table so that game results, historical winsand losses, and as a training system can be readily implemented by thepresent invention.

[0045] Using user console 304, a player may automatically log into aplayer's position to begin play of a casino game. Specifically, theplayer may place a player's identification card over the reader toestablish their identity and access their stake or credit line. Theplayer uses keyboard 306 to enter any private codes or passwords toverify their identity. Alternatively, the player places a credit cardover the reader to establish a stake. Rather than using physical casinochips or tokens, the player may place bets by moving tokens displayed onuser console 304 from a stakes region to a wager region displayed on theuser console 304.

[0046] As shown in FIG. 4, table controller 222 comprises a readerdriver interface 402 that manages the local reader network 220.Interface 402 is responsible for acquiring the value of each card (orRFID chip) positioned within the detection range of each reader 210 and214. Once acquired, CPU 404 executes control instructions stored inmemory 406 to interpret the information. Memory 406 also serves as alocal store for the information acquired by each reader 210 and 214.Memory 406 may comprise a combination of both volatile (RAM) for datastorage and non-volatile memory (ROM or Flash, a type of updateable readonly memory) for program storage. A LAN driver interface 408 operatesunder control of CPU 404 and couples table manager 222 to LAN 224. Aswill be appreciated, since a plurality of tables 112 are coupled by LAN224 to network manager 120, each controller 222 is responsible forindicating to network manager 120 intermediate results and completion ofeach casino game. Table controller 222 further comprises a universalpower supply 410 dedicated to the operation of network controller andreader network 220.

[0047] Referring now to FIG. 5, a method for monitoring the play of aplayer is illustrated. Initially, as indicated at step 502, each newplayer begins play by opening their personal account and establishing astake. In one preferred embodiment, players use a casino playeridentification card to quickly identify themselves. Such identificationcards are well known in the art and are widely used by casinos tocollect information regarding their players. If the player wishes tobegin play without using an identification card, the player must eitherbe on-site so that they can buy casino chips or tokens for use at thegame server or use an approved credit card. Casino employees mayidentify themselves by logging onto the system using their employeeidentification card as indicated at step 504. The table manager isresponsible for executing code to establish player accounts for localplayers.

[0048] Once a local player has established a stake, the table managerconveys this information to the network manager as indicated at step506. Remote players establish their account directly with the networkmanager using either a gaming machine 118, 130 or 134. Typically, theaccounts for remote players are established using a credit card or apreviously established casino account. The network manager uses theinformation to establish and maintain a separate real-time account forevery player regarding his or her play. In an alternative embodiment,network manager and the table controller pass the account information toa protected or secure server. This server maintains the player's andemployee accounts in real-time. Since the secure server is not directlyaccessible from outside the casino internal network, it is moredifficult to gain access to the accounting information. For each player,the account includes identifying information, such as the name, address,age of the player, player preferences for food, lodging andentertainment and other information the casino may deem of value fortheir marketing efforts.

[0049] As indicated at step 508, a log file that lists the game server(or servers) played by the player, the amount of each wager, the amountof the players' stake and the average size of the wager. The networkmanager, the secure server or other managers in the casino environment,may maintain this log file. Network manager also collects statisticalinformation regarding the location of the player, the won/lostpercentage and the duration of play for each player and on a cumulativebasis. This information is updated while the player plays at the gameserver (or servers) by logging the information to the log file. As eachplayer terminates play, the network manager closes the player's accountby crediting winnings, deducting losses and saving the log file asindicated at step 510. The statistical information may be updated atthis time or at selected intervals throughout the day. When the playersubsequently returns, the player's account may be re-opened so that newinformation may be added to the log file.

[0050] With smart table 112, maintaining the history log associated witheach player is greatly facilitated compared to manual entry casinoscurrently use for rating play by each player at a table game. The logfiles and the statistical information may be mined for information forcalculating casino profit or loss information in real time. If the logfile indicates that the anonymous player has won a substantial amount ofmoney, the network manager can initiate an alarm as indicated at step512. This alarm alerts casino employees that the player should pay theappropriate withholding amount for tax purposes or be monitored forimproper playing techniques. At the end of each accounting period, thecasino may provide an account statement to each registered player on amonthly, quarterly, semiannual or annual basis as indicated at step 514.The account statement may be useful for the player when calculatingtheir personal income tax return.

[0051] By accessing a selected player's log file detailing the series ofplays for the player, a casino pit boss and the marketing staff will beable to determine in real time whether the player is eligible for casinocomps. Since the log file contains significant information regardingeach player, the casino may sort the information to determine their mostloyal players for purpose of providing casino comps. By way of example,casino comps may include discounts on food, entertainment, lodging,travel to the casino and the like. By associating each player's log filewith account information, the comps can be tailored to the specificneeds or desires of the player. Further, the information may be used toautomatically rate the play of each player in terms of wagered amounts,duration of play or individual strategies/habits for each player.

[0052] The accumulated statistical information provides a comprehensivedatabase that is useful in determining game odds and strategysimulations. Further use of the accumulated statistical information mayalso be useful in training casino employees in a manner whereperformances of dealers and players can be tracked in real-time.

[0053] In addition to tracking players while they are playing a casinogame, the present system also provides information regarding the casinoemployee or employees conducting the casino game. For example, withsmart table 112 and the smart gaming objects, the log file can include afield to associate a casino employee conducting each casino game witheach wager. Thus, the casino can readily mine real-time information toverify that the game is being played properly, wagers are settledcorrectly and that their employee is properly conducting the game. Byway of example, smart table 112 tracks the casino chips wagered and thecasino chips in the dealer's tray to generate a real-time audit trail.Smart table 112 also tracks the cards to verify that no card has beenremoved from the table or that no additional cards have been injectedsurreptitiously into play. Further, each gaming object includes anencrypted security code so that the table controller is able to verifythat a gaming object is genuine. Security information is preferablymaintained at a computer that is separate from the table controller,such as by way of example, the network manager.

[0054]FIG. 6 illustrates one embodiment of an intelligent casinomanagement network system. The casino management network system ishierarchical in nature so that separate computer systems are responsiblefor various tasks associated with conducting a game of chance with bothlocal and remote players or with just remote players. This hierarchicalstructure provides important safeguards that are necessary due to thepublic's access to casino computer and the risk of hackers orcyber-criminals improperly manipulating accounting information, wageramounts or game results.

[0055] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 6, network manager 602provides a public portal through which players are provided access tocasino environment 600. More specifically, remote players access networkmanager 602 over a public or private communication network 604, whichmay be the Internet, public telephone network, a local area network(LAN) or a wide area network (WAN). Players who are remote from casinoenvironment 600 access network 604 using a telephone, such as aweb-enabled cell phone, computer or some other computer-basedcommunication device (not shown).

[0056] Network manager 602 is responsible for maintaining the exchangeof information between the remote players and the casino environment600. Typically, the casino environment will comprise at least one gameof chance played at a smart table. Network manager 602 is preferably acomputer server system configured to maintain communication threads witha plurality of remote players. Information transferred over network 604by each remote player is received and interpreted by network manager 602placing the information in shared memory 606. A casino backend manager608 and a pit manager 610 access the information stored in shared memory606. In this manner, information flow from network manager 502 isrestricted to transferring information between remote players and sharedmemory 606. This restriction isolates the casino environment 600 fromoutside attacks. Network manager 602 does not have any directcommunication with either pit manager 610 or casino backend manager 608to minimize the ability of hackers to infiltrate the casino environment600.

[0057] When network manager 602 receives information from a remoteplayer, it does not have access to information databases to verify theplayer's identity or authorization to participate in a game of chance.Accordingly, network manager 602 writes information received from theremote player to shared memory and requests casino backend manager 608to authorize the player. Preferably, backend manager 608 periodicallyverifies that each player currently playing is authorized to do so. If apreviously unauthorized player is detected, appropriate securitymeasures are instituted. By way of example, the player's authorizationis suspended and the player's accounts frozen pending resolution of thesecurity issue.

[0058] If backend manager 608 verifies the remote player, the pitmanager 610 is notified of a new remote player. Simultaneously, backendmanager 508 posts acceptance of the remote player to shared memory 606.Network manager 502 acknowledges acceptance by reading shared memory 504and sets up a remote player's account in either shared memory or inother memory associated with network manager 602. During the course ofplay, backend manager 608 maintains a detailed log of play by eachauthorized player until that player terminates play. Backend manager 608may include a set of rules, embodied in a rules engine 614, to determinehow to arbitrate play, suspend play or terminate play should there be adisruption of communications or if unauthorized activity is detected.Backend manager 608 is also responsible for notifying network manager602 and pit manager 610 of the status for each remote player. By way ofexample, a remote player's status may be either authorized to play,currently playing one or more games of chance, inactive, terminated.

[0059] Backend manager 608 maintains a separate list log file 616 foreach remote player together with the status of the player and each wagerplaced at a game of chance. The advantage of list log file 616 is thatit enables revenue sharing between different casino properties. This isparticularly advantageous if a player begins play at a first casino butthen, by way of the IGS of the present invention, selects a game at adifferent casino property. To encourage a large number of casinoproperties to link to the IGS and provide a vast array of availablecasino games, it is desirable to provide a means for casinos to sharerevenue. Thus, backend manager 608 may periodically transfer to a secondcasino account information regarding play of a remote player affiliatedwith the second casino. Based on this information, the two casinos mayshare both the profit and the loss associated with this remote player.

[0060] To minimize disruption due to failure of the backend manager 608or a component thereof, one or more computer systems, represented asbackend manager 608A, are provided. Backend manager 608A operates inparallel with backup manager 608 so there is always on-line redundancy.For higher levels of reliability (and to minimize the likelihood ofimproper manipulation of data in real-time), a third redundant backendmanager (not illustrated) enables the collective backend managers toconduct periodic votes as to whether the plurality of list logs is inagreement. If there is a disagreement between the plurality of backendmanagers: (1) the majority will prevail; (2) the losing system will beflagged as operating in an error state; and (3) system administratorswill be notified of the error.

[0061] Pit manager 610 is a computer server system responsible formonitoring shared memory 604 to determine if one or more remote playershave timely placed a wager on a next to occur game of chance. Pitmanager 610 may only accept wagers from players authorized by backendmanager 608 to place such wagers. Thus, when network manager 604 placesa bet in shared memory, a flag is set to notify pit manager 601 that anew wager has arrived. Pit manager 610 is responsible for passing thewager to the appropriate table controller (that is, table 6-1, table 6-2or table 6-3) and resetting the wager flag. During the transferoperation, pit manager 610 verifies that the player is listed on loglist 618 and updates list log 618 to reflect the new wager. Alsoassociated with pit manager 610 is a rules engine 620 so that pitmanager 610 can respond to a variety of situations regarding the rulesof play at each game of chance.

[0062] As with the backend manager 608, redundant pit managers,illustrated as pit manager 610A, are provided. Pit manger 610A isresponsible for minimizing disruption due to failure of the pit manager610 or a component thereof. Pit manager 610A operates in parallel withpit manager 610 so there is always on-line redundancy. For higher levelsof reliability and to minimize the likelihood of improper manipulationof data in real-time, a third redundant pit manager (not illustrated)enables the collective backend managers to conduct periodic votes as towhether the plurality of list logs 618 are in agreement. If there is adisagreement between the plurality of pit managers: (1) the majoritywill prevail; (2) the losing system will be flagged as operating in anerror state; and (3) system administrators will be notified of theerror.

[0063] Table controller 612 is responsible for monitoring each play ofthe game of chance at a table, illustrated as table 6-1. Other tablecontrollers 612A and 612B, associated with tables 6-2 and 6-3,respectively, are also coupled to pit manager 610, with each having aselected game of chance being played on the respective table. It will beappreciated that there may be a mix of both local and remote playersplaying at any given table as well as a plurality of proxy players.Accordingly, table controller 612 recognizes if a player is local orremote and, if remote, whether playing by way of a proxy. The concept ofproxy players is described in U.S. Patent Application Serial No.60/283,807, filed Apr. 13, 2001 and assigned to the assignee of thepresent invention, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein forall purposes.

[0064] Once the play of the game is complete, table controller 612passes the result for each remote player to pit manager 610 togetherwith an accounting for each wager made by each remote player. If anintermediate result is required, table controller passes intermediateresults to pit manager 610 and waits for a selected period of time forinstructions from the remote player. To track the plurality of wagers,table controller 612 maintains a list log for each player, whether localor remote, and their respective wagers. Pit manager 610 transfers finalor intermediate results for each play of a game of chance received fromeach table controller 612 to shared memory 604 and notifies networkmanager 602 that action is required.

[0065] One embodiment of shared memory 604 is shown in FIG. 7.Specifically, shared memory 604 comprises a list of players 702, a listof their current status 704, a list of wagers associated with eachplayer 706 and a list of pending action or actions 708. These lists maybe maintained either as a flat file or in a plurality of linkedhierarchical files.

[0066] One or more flags may be associated with each player andmaintained in a flag list 710. Flag list 710 is maintained to indicatewhich manager is responsible for acting on the information in sharedmemory 604. By way of example, a ‘snap-shot’ in time of representativereal-time information is illustrated. Specifically, the flag value “n”associated with the first pending wager for “player-52” indicates thatthe network manager 602 has a pending result from table 6-1 that needsto be transmitted to the identified remote player. Once this result isforwarded to the remote player, the pit will transfer wageringinformation to shared memory 604 and set the flag to notify networkmanager 602 that new information has arrived. While network manager 602services this transaction, other managers process information fromshared memory. By way of further illustration, other information inshared memory indicates that pit manager 610 currently has a playerresponse waiting to be transferred to table controller 612B for table6-2. Further, a wager in the amount of $8 placed by “player-52” is readyto be placed at table 6-3. Pit manager 610 also monitors shared memorywaiting for a response from “player-645” and since the flag is still setto an “n”, it indicates that the network manager has not yet receivedthe response from the player. Similarly, a player request has gone outto “player-10679” who has not responded in a reasonable period of time.Thus, the network manager has requested backend manager 608 to interveneand resolve the request in accordance with the rules set associated withbackend manager 608.

[0067] Shared memory 606 also indicates that “player-75” is inactive and“player-129” is in the process of terminating play. The backendprocessor is responsible for updating the status of these players(either removing them from the list log or permitting them to remain onthe list log). Specifically, when backend processor finishes thetermination process for “player-129” the list in shared memory 604 willbe updated to remove reference to this player. Concurrently therewithlist log 614 for this player will be updated by moving the informationin the log to long-term storage, which by way of example may be a diskdrive or a storage area network (SAN) (not shown). Long-term storagepermits the sequence of plays to be retained for analysis or forresolving disputes raised at a later period of time. Concurrent with thetermination process for the player, backend manager 608 notifies pitmanager 610 that player-129 is no longer approved for play. Accordingly,pit manager 610 moves the information associated with player-129 tolong-term storage, which again may be a disk drive or a storage areanetwork (SAN) (not shown).

[0068] Depending on the rules set, backend manager 608 may also initiatethe termination process for “player-75” or, if the player places anotherwager prior to completion of the termination process, the backendprocessor 608 will permit pit manager 610 to accept the wager.

[0069] Referring now to FIG. 8, another preferred embodiment of a casinonetwork environment in accordance with the present invention isillustrated. In this embodiment, a three-level network architectureutilizes a scaled approach to achieve a casino network environment thatcan process communication with a large number of remote players whilemaintaining the security to ensure proper results are achieved for boththe players and the casino. This embodiment includes network manager 602as the portal through which remote players access the casino environmentover network 604. However, instead of reporting communications to ashared memory as illustrated in FIG. 6, network manager 602 acts anintermediary reporting each communication out to the first level network802 in the present embodiment.

[0070] As illustrated, network manager includes a secure socket layer804 to provide players a secure environment to transfer account andwager information over network 604. The use of secure socket layer 804is common in the art of network communications and will not be furtherdiscussed herein. Network manager 602 may include data storage space forretaining a record of the communication traffic with each remote playerin a list log file (not shown).

[0071] Although not illustrated, network manager 602 may comprise aplurality of computer server systems configured to balance the number ofplayers on each system. Further, network manager may include a pluralityof redundant computer servers configured to operate in tandem so as toprovide a high degree of fault tolerance and reliability.

[0072] On the casino environment side, network manager 602 communicatesover network 802 through a secure socket layer and firewall 806 tomaximize secure communications with backend manager 608, floor managers808 and video manager 810. In the preferred embodiment, backend manager608, floor managers 808 and video manager 810 are each provided with afirewall and means for establishing a secure socket layer 812. Floormanagers 808 and video managers need not be physically present in asingle casino. Rather, each floor manager 808 may consist of a pluralityof games of chance at a particular casino with a plurality of casinoscoupled together by the networks.

[0073] When network manager 602 receives communication from a remoteuser, the information is transmitted to the backend manager 608 andfloor managers 808. Backend manager 608 generates a log file maintainedon a storage area network (SAN) 814 of every message sent by networkmanager 608 to one or both of the floor managers 808. Further, backendmanager 608 also maintains a copy of every message sent by floormanagers 808 to network manager 608. As in the embodiment of FIG. 6,backend manager 608 maintains a set of rules, stored on SAN 814 so thatwhen either network manager or floor managers 808 detect a problem,backend manager 608 may resolve the problem in real-time in accordancewith the rules.

[0074] Video manager 810 is a computer server system dedicated tomanaging the stream of video data captured by a plurality of videocameras (not shown) distributed throughout the casino environment.Typically, video data is saved to a tape backup system 816 associatedwith video manager 810. It will be appreciated that the video data willinclude the ambient noise of the casino environment although some videodata may be associated with a specific microphone (not shown) positionedto capture audio associated with a specific dealer or casino employee.Video manager 810 also transmits video data to floor managers wheresegments of video data are selectively stored on SANs 818 and 820 andmatched with wagers placed by each remote player.

[0075] Floor managers are responsible for conveying communications fromnetwork manager 602 to a selected game of chance associated with one ofa plurality of pit managers 624A-624F. When a result is available fromthe selected game of chance, the respective pit manager transfers theresult to the respective floor manager where it is associated with oneor a plurality of the video data provided by video manager 810. Theresult and the video data are provided to network manager 602 fortransmission to the remote players. In some embodiments, wherecommunications bandwidth limits the ability to transmit video data inreal time without buffering, the results may be transferred without thevideo data. The video data may be transmitted at the maximum ratetogether with a displayable warning that the video is not real-time andthat the remote player should not depend on the video data to determinethe rate of play at a selected game of chance. In one preferredembodiment, the video warning is a video overlay displayed incombination with the video data at the remote player's video display.

[0076] Although not shown in FIG. 8, it is to be understood that eachpit manager communicates with a plurality of table controllers. Theactual number of table controllers reporting to a particular pit managerdepends on many engineering factors and will vary from casino to casino.By way of illustration, the number of tables that a pit manager caninterface with depends on (but is not limited to) the number of playersat each table, the rate of play, the number of unique wagers that mustbe processed for each play, the communication bandwidth, the responserate of remote players and the processing capability of the tablecontroller and the pit manager.

[0077] Rules engines 826 comprise an executable module of computer codeexecuted by floor manager 808 in response to specific operationalcircumstances. For example, when play at a table requires a responsefrom a remote player that has not arrived at network manager 602 withina predetermined time period, floor manager 808 invokes the rules engine826. Rules engine 826 accepts status input from the pit managerassociated with the table, communication status from the network managerand the average response time for the remote player on a historicalbasis. Rules engine 826 determines how to proceed, using the availablestatus information. For example, in some circumstances, the wager may bewithdrawn and the remote player is flagged as being inactive. In othercircumstances, the rules engine may complete play for the remote playerusing a set of “house rules” that dictate the response in the player'sabsence. Each player may be associated with a personalized set of rulesbased on their individual preference. By way of example, if the remoteplayer is non-responsive in a game of black jack, the rules engine maybe invoked to determine whether to accept an additional card, doubledown, or stand with the current cards. The decision may be based on theplayer's cards and the dealer's up card. The rules engine may select amanner of completing play that is dependant on many factors, such as thesize of the remote player's stake, the size of the current wager, therecent result history or other individualized criteria.

[0078] One significant advantage of enabling the rules engine is that aremote player may remotely place wagers on more than one game of chancewithout having to remain accessible for providing intermediateinstructions. Another significant advantage arises from the ability of aremote player to quickly transfer instructions to a selected floormanager to place wagers for a sequence of plays at one or more games ofchance and then log off prior to the start of the individual games. At asubsequent time, the remote player may return and request the floormanager to display the results, including a video replay of one or moreselected games.

[0079] The embodiment FIG. 8 may further include a casino networkcontrol manager 828. Network control center 828 is responsible forsystem administration functions associated with the networks 802 and 822within the casino environment. Specifically, each active tablecontroller must register with its assigned pit manager prior tooperation. Each pit manager then informs network control center 828,network manager 602, backend manger 608 and the respective floormanager. Network control center provides the capability to instructnetwork manager to assign new players to a specific table or tables soas to spread the number of players over a larger number of tables.Further network manger continuously monitors network and system loadfactors to minimize loading on a particular floor manager or pitmanager. Load balancing enables the casino to spread the risk associatedwith having a disproportionate number of players at a single table.Network control center may also monitor the total value of the wagers(or average wager value) to determine if the players at a particulartable are betting at a rate that approaches the casino's upper limit.Again, if the wagered amount is too high at one table, network controlcenter may instruct network manager and the floor managers to restrictentry of new players to that particular table.

[0080] Refer now to FIG. 9A where one embodiment of a database 900associated with the casino environment of the present invention isillustrated. More particularly, the database is preferably maintainedwith either the backend manager or the network control center dependingon the allocation of computer resources for the various tasks. In oneembodiment, database 900 is maintained on SAN 814 and shared amongnetwork control center 828, floor managers 808 and backend manager 608.In alternative embodiment, database 900 may be distributed among SANs814, 818 and 820 in a redundant manner so that loss of access to one SANpermits continued operation.

[0081] Database 900 comprises data 902 associated with each player,whether remote or local, data 904 associated with each play of each gameof chance at every active table, performance monitoring data 906,statistical data collection and analysis associated with games playedover a period of time 908, data made available to national, state andinternal regulators 910 and video library 912.

[0082] Data 902 includes a Player ID to uniquely identify each player.Personalized data associated with each Player ID includes personalinformation such as name, address and age. Data 902 includes casinocredit information which may include player deposits or may be based onthe casino's historical association with the player or on the player'scredit information obtained from a third party financial institution byway of a credit card charge or bank draft. With this information, casinomay selectively provide a player with a credit line during the course ofplay. Data 902 also includes a rating factor assigned by the casino toidentify its valuable repeat customers.

[0083] For each player, personalization information is collected andretained as a part of data 902 so that the casino will know the player'spreferences in terms of promotional interests or in the particular gamesof chance that he or she likes to play. Personalization information alsoincludes a set of instructions that are invoked by the rules engine togenerate gaming results should the player be unable to participate.Personalization information is collected either on-line using a profileform collected from each player or information derived by analyzing theplayer's play over a period of time.

[0084] Data 902 may also include a historical summary of each visit theplayer has made to the casino, either in person or by using the IGS suchas described herein. Historical information includes data indicative ofthe player's average rate of play for each game of chance and for eachvisit.

[0085] Data 902 further includes a stake for each player. This amountwill increase or decrease as the player participates in one or moregames of chance. When a wager is placed, a portion of the stake must beallocated to cover the wager in the event of a loss. A wager list ismaintained to trace each wager place, the game ID and the result.Winning wagers are credited to the stake and losing wagers are deductedtherefrom. It will be apparent to one familiar with database managementthat data 902 will include the above-described information associatedwith literally millions of individual players.

[0086] Data 904 includes a Game ID to uniquely identify each game playedat a particular smart table 112. Data also includes a table ID thatrelates to a specific table controller. Data 904 further includes thepit ID and the floor manager ID associated with the table ID. Thisinformation is useful in managing loading information and forreconstructing wagers placed for each play of a game. Data 904 furtherincludes a casino ID because it is possible that a remote player couldenter the casino environment at a first casino and then transfer to asecond casino to play at a different table. The casino ID is useful todetermine revenue allocation when a remote player at one casino places abet at another casino.

[0087] Game Status data indicates the current status of the play of thegame of chance at the related table controller. Network managerdetermines if wagers may be placed on the next to occur game of chanceusing this data in real-time. For example, if the game status iscurrently “Waiting for Next Game” then wagers may be accepted. If thegame status is “Play In Progress” then new wagers will be held for thenext to occur game.

[0088] In order to track the efficiency of casino staff associated witheach play of the game of chance. Specifically, a dealer ID and a Pit IDare stored as a part of data 904 together with Players IDs for both thephysical and remote players. For each player, an available stake andwager amount is also associated with each game ID. The stake amount mustbe verified prior to each wager being accepted because the player may beplaying at more than one game of chance.

[0089] Performance monitor data 906 comprises data useful for managingcasino operations. More specifically, data 906 includes casino staffmember IDs, an average rate of play rating for the staff membersconducting the game of chance, for example, the dealers, bankers,croupier, pit bosses, a summary of how well the casino staff conductsthe game and the number of players served at the table. A portion of theperformance monitor data 906 includes information that is useful forproviding a high level of customer service, such as efficientlyapproving and providing casino comps, and for marketing new games andservices to the players. Finally, performance monitor data 906 alsoincludes real-time accounting information that is useful for determiningprofit or loss for each table for each game or for a period of time.

[0090] The data retained in database 900 represents comprehensive finegrain statistical data that enables the casino to drill down to obtaincomplete perspective of casino operations in real-time including theaverage response time of dealers and players. Alternatively, thecollected information enables a broader perspective for refining casinooperations based on a complete set of data. The data in database 900 isuseful for verifying that both casino staff members and the playersproperly conduct the games of chance. Network control manager 828 canset alarm points indicative of potential fraudulent conditions and linkto corresponding video clips so that casino security can matchstatistical data with the relevant video images.

[0091] The data retained in database 900 provides governmentalregulators and internal casino security staff an improved perspective onthe conduct of each game of chance, detection of illegal strategies andidentification of suspicious players.

[0092] In FIG. 9B, a network map 912 is illustrated. The network map isuseful for load balancing and game monitoring. The map provides anaddress for each table on the network as illustrated in column “AddressMap” 914. For example, there is a table referred to as T1 that isassociated with pit manager P2 and floor manager F1. There are threeadditional tables T2, T3 and T4 that are also associated with pitmanager P2. Further, as illustrated in map 912, there are three tablesassociated with pit manager P1 and floor manager F2. Floor manager F2may be at a second casino physical remote from the casino where floormanager F1 is located. In addition, a plurality of additional tables,represented as Tn, is illustrated as being associated with pit managerPm and floor manager Fx.

[0093] In column “Table Status” 916, the status of each table ismaintained. As illustrated, table T1P2F1 is an active table, which meansthat it is currently conducting a casino game such as Blackjack. Othertables, such as T4P2F1, T2P1F2 and TnPmF2, are also active. The networkmap 912 also denotes that some tables, such as T2P2F1, T3P2F1, T1P1F2and TnPmFx, are inactive, which means that these tables are notpresently available for play.

[0094] With respect to the active tables, the “Player Status” 918 columndenotes the players currently playing at a table. By way ofillustration, at table T1 P2F1 there are currently five players,p1-ID-L, p2-ID-R, p3-ID-R, p4-ID-R and p5-ID-L where p1 denotes aplayer, the ID denotes a unique player identification code, and theletter R or L denotes whether the player is a remote or local player.For each player, a wager is denoted in the “Wager” 920 column. Further,each wager is associated with a time stamp as illustrated in the “TmeStamp” 922 column. The time stamp indicates when each wager was receivedeither at the network manager by the remote players or by the localplayers.

[0095] In the “Game ID” 924 column, a unique game identification numberis associated with the table, pit manager and the floor manager. Thegame ID is assigned for each play of a game. In the “Game Object ID” 926column, a list of each gaming object associated with each game and eachplayer is identified. By way of example, if the casino game at tableT1P2F1 is blackjack, the gaming object comprises, at a minimum, the twoinitial cards dealt to each player. This is indicated by the “2-Card-ID”for player p1-ID-L. This means that the player has elected to stay withthe initial cards. Other players, such as p2-ID-R, p3-ID-R and p5-ID-L,have all elected to draw additional cards, which are indicated as havingfour, three and three cards respectively. Each gaming object has aunique encoded identification number.

[0096] At the other active tables, such as table T4P2F1 where Baccaratis being played, the gaming objects are denoted as 2P-Card-ID (i.e., theplayer cards) and 2B-Card-ID (i.e., the banker cards). As with theblackjack table, each of the cards is encoded with a uniqueidentification number. Referring back to the “Wager” column, the playerwagers are denoted as being placed on the Player's cards, the bankercards or on a tie. At table TnPmF2 where Pai Gow Poker is being played,each player is dealt seven cards, each with a unique identificationnumber.

[0097] Associated with each table is a video segment obtained from avideo camera. Each camera has a unique identification number asindicated in the “Video Segment ID” 928 column. Although only one camerais illustrated, it will be appreciated that each table may have aplurality of cameras associated therewith.

[0098] Using the information in network map 912, the network controlmanager 828 can detect when additional tables need to be broughton-line. Based on the loading illustrated in network map 912, it appearsthat table T1P2F1 is operating at about ⅚^(th) capacity. Accordingly,network control manager will issue an alarm to casino staff to activatean additional blackjack table. Since the other two active tables arelightly loaded, several additional players may begin playing therespective games before a capacity limit is reached. It should beapparent that the present invention provides real-time view of casinooperations.

[0099] Refer now to FIG. 10 where, in conjunction with FIGS. 2, 6 and 8,an operational flow diagram for play of a casino game in the casinoenvironment of the present invention is illustrated. When a table isfirst activated, the table controller registers with its pit manager asindicated at step 1002. As part of the registration process, the tablecontroller and pit manager will verify the operational status of thecomponents of the table and the communication channel. Once theinitialization process is complete, the pit manager then broadcasts tonetwork manager, backend manager and network control manager that thenew table controller is on-line and available for accepting wagers forthe particular game of chance played at the table as indicated at step1004.

[0100] The table remains quiescent until a player selects the table forplay by registering for play as indicated at step 1006. The player maybe either remote or physical. If the player is physical, registrationmay be as simple as placing a bet in the indicated bet slot 206 on thetable, in which case the player is playing as an anonymous player.Alternatively, the local player may place a casino identification cardover the bet slot 206 to automatically establish their identity. Localplayers may wish to establish their identity in order to qualify forcasino comps based on their rate of play and the aggregate amountwagered. The table controller notifies its pit manager of the localplayer so that the pit manager may monitor their play. As part of theregistration process, pit manager notifies the backend manager and thenetwork manager of the local player. When a remote player selects thetable, the network manager passes the registration request to the pitmanager, the backend manger and the network controller so that eachmanager may monitor subsequent play.

[0101] When players are registered, the casino staff member (forexample, the dealer or the banker) initiates play of the game of chance,as indicated at step 1008 by requesting players to place a wager.Simultaneously, a game ID is generated by the table controller andcommunicated to the pit manager. Once a first wager is placed, the pitmanager generates a request to remote players and local players with acount down indicator of the time available to place a bet. The remoteplayers view the count down indicator on their respective game machinewhile local players view the count down indicator on user console 304.

[0102] While the count down indicator is decreasing, pit manager checkswith network manager for receipt of wagers from remote players. When thecount down indicator reaches zero, the pit manager will not accept latearriving wagers for the current game ID. Instead, the wager will bereserved for the next to occur game at the table. If a wager is timelyreceived, the pit manager transfers the wager to the table controller.

[0103] The table controller is tasked with generating a wager list ofall accepted wagers (both physical and remote) as indicated at step1010. This information is combined with the wager informationdistributed by pit manager to the other managers (other than networkmanager).

[0104] The table controller is tasked with detecting game results,either intermediate or final. If the game result is intermediate, thetable controller transmits the intermediate result for each remoteplayer to the pit manager. The intermediate result is tagged with a timestamp. This information is then transferred to the remote player via thenetwork manager. The pit manager notifies the backend manager of thepending response due from one or more remote players. The backendmanager watches for a response from the remote player by monitoringshared memory 606 or floor manager 808. If no response is timelyreceived, the backend manager authorizes a response, generated by therules engine, to be sent to the table controller. The rules engineresponse is tagged to indicate that the remote player did not provideit. When the game result is a final result it is tagged with a timestamp, staff ID, current player IDs and a list of current wagers. Thisinformation is transferred to the pit manager and to the other managerson the network as indicated at step 1012.

[0105] As indicated at step 1014, play continues at the table bybeginning play of the next to occur game of chance. If new players havebeen previously registered, they will be authorized to place a wager onthis play of the game. When several of the players terminate play andthe system load factor is low, the table may be decommissioned, asindicated at step 1016. Decommissioning means that the table is removedfrom the list of tables available to accept wagers. Network controlmanager is responsible for initiating the decommissioning process andfor verifying with each manager that the table is no longer consideredan active table.

[0106] Operation of the table controller is illustrated in FIG. 11.Specifically, after the table controller has registered with itsrespective pit manager, the casino staff member initiates play byrequesting wagers to be placed as indicated at step 1102. If no localplayer places a wager, play will only start when a remote player placesa wager. Once a wager is placed, the table controller will initiate atimer that determines how long to wait before activating the gamingobjects. More specifically, activating the gaming object means that thecards are dealt, the dice tossed or the roulette wheel activated.Simultaneous with activating the timer, the table controller generates astatus message that is transmitted to all registered players whetherlocal or remote.

[0107] Once the timer times out, pit manager will not accept anyadditional remote wagers and the table controller will not accept anyadditional local wagers. As indicated at step 1106, table controllerdetects the wagers placed by each local and remote player and generatesa wager list. The wager list is transmitted to the pit manager. In turn,the pit manager passes the wager list to the floor manager, the backendmanager and a partial list of wagers associated with remote players istransmitted to the network manager. The list is distributed to themanagers to minimize the likelihood that a remote hacker can infiltrateeach manager and modify the respective wager lists.

[0108] As indicated at step 1108, the table controller detectsintermediate decision points during play of the game. For example, ifthe game of chance is black jack each player must make an intermediatedecision based on their cards and the cards of the other players.Accordingly, at step 1110, table controller pauses for a decision to bemade by the player. For local players, the casino staff member candirectly solicit the player's instructions. However, for remote players,it may be difficult to solicit a response due to the remoteness of theplayer where visual signals may not be exchanged, language difficultiesor the like. Further, remote players may not even be present when therequest for input is solicited or the communication connection may havebeen lost. In such instances, table controller starts a countdown timerand notifies pit manager that a request for instructions has beenissued. Pit manager passes the request to the network manager and thebackend manager. If a response is not timely received, the backendmanager invokes the rules engine to determine a response. Of course, ifthe remote player submits their instructions that are received at thenetwork manager prior to the termination of the response period, theremote player's instructions will be accepted.

[0109] Thereafter, as indicated at step 1112, the table controllercontinues the play of the game, detects the outcome and provides theinformation for display to remote players. Finally, the table controllerat step 1114 settles the wagers and updates the wager list. Thisinformation is distributed to the pit manager and, in turn, to thebackend manager, network manager and to the network control manager.

[0110] Operation of the pit manager and floor manager are illustrated inFIG. 12. As indicated at step 1202, pit manager establishes acommunication link with the floor manager that in turn maintains acommunication link with network manager over the internal casinonetwork. This link is maintained for so long as the pit manager isactive, which means that at least one table controller is active. Thefloor manager monitors the network manager for new remote players orwagers from previously registered remote players as indicated at step1204. The floor manager then passes new wagers to the selected pitmanager. When the pit manager receives a new wager, the time stampsapplied by the network manager and the floor manager to verify that itwas timely delivered relative to the status of the table controller asindicated at step 1206.

[0111] The pit manager monitors play at each table controller assignedto the pit manager. The pit manager remains in communication with floormanager so that when floor manager detects activity directed to aspecific table, the appropriate pit manager will be promptly notified.This activity is illustrated at step 1208.

[0112] In step 1210, the floor manger monitors wagering patterns foreach player or for groups of players to identify inappropriate wagers.The floor manager also generates statistical data based on theinformation gathered from the plurality of pit managers.

[0113] As indicated at step 1212, the pit manager transmits gameoutcomes to the floor manager, the backend manager and the networkmanager. This information is then transmitted to remote users. Finally,as indicated at step 1214, game statistics are transferred to long-termstorage and linked to the video stream obtained from the plurality ofcameras located throughout the casino.

[0114] It should be apparent to one skilled in the art of casinooperations that the present invention is readily adaptable to use withina casino environment that may include adjoining restaurants, lounges,hotel rooms or special gaming arenas. Further the present inventionimplements an interactive gaming system that is secure, redundant anddistributed in a manner that permits load balancing among a plurality oftables. Due to the distributed nature of the casino network environment,a wide variety of casino games (such as slots, roulette, craps, cardgames etc.) may be adapted for play by both local and remote playerswithout degrading the playing experience for either.

[0115] In summary, the above-described aspects of the present inventionenable the casino to operate at a level that provides a higher degree ofservice to the player regardless of where located. The present inventionalso enables the casino to manage operations more efficiently and toidentify games, players or staff employees that are acting in animproper manner and to generate substantive evidence to supportsubsequent investigations. These and other advantages are describedbelow and in the claims. Specifically, the present invention describes amethod for conducting interactive gaming where a plurality of local andremote players may participate in selected casino games conducted by acasino staff member. The method comprises the steps of: 1) Detecting thevalue of all gaming objects associated with each selected game; 2)Identifying players participating in each casino game; 3) Monitoring theperformance of said casino staff member; 4) Transmitting the finalresults of each of said casino games to each participating player; and5) Maintaining a historical database for each play of said casino game,said historical database having a time stamp, the value of all gamingobjects, associating at least one gaming object with each of saidparticipating players, associating said wager by each of saidparticipating players and a video/audio stream displaying the play ofsaid casino game.

[0116] The present invention further includes a method for determiningwhen at least one of said participating player qualifies for a casinocomps.

[0117] The present invention further includes a determining a profilefor each player and for updating said profile for each player inreal-time.

[0118] The present invention further includes a periodically oron-demand determining whether said player owes income taxes based onsaid historical wagers.

[0119] The present invention further includes a method for conducting aninteractive casino game having a plurality of local and remote players,said method comprising the steps of establishing a communication linkbetween a smart table, a pit manager and a network manager; Initiatingplay of a casino game; Transmitting a request for wagers to each remoteplayer; Initiating a wager period that may or may not depend ondetection of a first wager; Determining the end of said wager period;Detecting the value of said gaming object associated with each player;Determining the result of said play; Communicating the result of saidplay to each remote player; and Retaining a historical list of eachplayer's wager, the gaming objects associated with each player and theresult of said play.

[0120] The present invention further includes a method for transmittinga request for an intermediate decision from at least one of said remoteplayers; Initiating a response period; Detecting whether a response tosaid request is received; If said response is timely received, continueplay of said game; and If said response is not received, determining theend of said response period and invoking a rules engine for generating aresponse for said remote player.

[0121] The present invention further includes a method for associating avideo and/or audio stream with said play; and Transmitting saidvideo/audio stream with said result to each of said remote players. Thepresent invention further describes a method of transmitting video/audiofrom at least one remote player to the pit manager or dealer as well asother remote players to support of interactivity and/or playerverification.

[0122] The present invention further includes establishing communicationmeans such as an Internet-based network for exchanging text messagesand/or video/audio images between each remote player and the dealer.

[0123] The present invention further includes a method for determining aprofile for each dealer (or casino staff) and for updating said profilefor each dealer (or casino staff) in real-time.

[0124] The present invention further includes a method for periodicallyor on-demand generating a corporate report and for updating saidcorporate report in real-time.

[0125] The present invention further includes a method for periodicallyor on-demand generating a casino gaming network status report and forupdating said casino gaming network status report in real-time.

[0126] The present invention further includes a method for generating inreal-time appropriate alarms that require immediate attention from thecasino staff, on exceptional win, e.g. Jackpot, excessively high wageror total wagers, request for increase in wager limits or credit, orsecurity concern.

[0127] The present invention further includes a method for periodicallyor on-demand monitoring selected games and collecting game statisticsfor various games to verify the odds and payout decisions as well asplanning for new games and for updating said corporate report inreal-time.

[0128] The present invention further includes a method for automaticallyor manually configuring the casino gaming management system so as tomonitor user-selectable subsystems and parameters for data collection,filtering, real-time online and offline analysis and report.

[0129] The present invention further includes a method for providing anenvironment for the players to chat, socialize and to exchange ideas ongaming, e.g. games strategy, game selection, wagering, and proxy play.

[0130] The present invention further includes a method for providing anenvironment for the players to chat, socialize and to exchange ideas ongaming, e.g. games strategy, game selection, wagering, and proxy play.

[0131] The present invention further includes a method for collectinggame statistics and making the statistics available in real-time to theplayers to help in determining their gaming decisions, possibly at somecharge.

[0132] The present invention further includes a method for allowing eachremote player to give tip at each game to be deducted from the player'scredit and of determining and displaying said tips to the dealer andmaintaining a tip inventory to enable management to determine a tipamount to pay to each dealer from the pool, and to monitor which dealerearns the most tips from the players.

[0133] The present invention further includes a method for enablingproxy play in which a remote player can select a physical player oranother previously registered remote player to represent his/her bettingdecision and for allowing the network manager or backend manager (orother server) to regulate the proxy play so as to limit the total amountof wager and to perform load balancing in terms of the number of playersand the amount wagered on each play of a game of chance. (Note that inthe case fixed non-interactivity as in PaiGow Poker, where there may bemultiple options of arranging the two hands, remote players associatedwith a proxy should be allowed to select his/her own option. Forinteractive game such as Blackjack where different classes of remoteplayers can be established depending on their different choices ofdecisions; in order to avoid remote players affecting the card outcomes,we can provide an option to allow remote players to draw random virtualcards.)

[0134] The present invention further includes a method for periodicallyor on-demand determining the inventory of chips at each game table andverifying against the expected figures calculated from total payout inthe interval, in real-time without interrupting ongoing games.

[0135] While certain exemplary preferred embodiments have been describedand shown in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that suchembodiments are merely illustrative of and not restrictive on the broadinvention. Further, it is to be understood that this invention shall notbe limited to the specific construction and arrangements shown anddescribed since various modifications or changes may occur to those ofordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe invention as claimed.

We claim:
 1. A method for conducting interactive gaming where aplurality of local and remote players may participate in at least oneselected casino game conducted by a casino staff member, said methodcomprising the steps of: Establishing a stake for said remote playerswho are participating in said selected casino game; Accepting a wagerfrom each of said local and remote players; Detecting the value of atleast one gaming object associated with said selected casino game todetermine winning and losing wagers for each of said local and remoteplayers who are participating in said selected casino game; Remotelymonitoring a series of plays of said selected casino game, said remotemonitoring including monitoring the rate of play, the wagered amount andthe results of each play of said selected casino game; and Maintaining ahistorical database for each play of said casino game, said historicaldatabase having a time stamp, the value of all gaming objects forcompletion of said play, associating a wager determination with each ofsaid participating players, associating a video signal displaying theplay of said casino game with said time stamp.
 2. The method of claim 1further comprising the step of determining when at least one of saidparticipating player qualifies for a casino comp.
 3. The method of claim1 further comprising the step of maintaining a player profile up-datedin real-time for each of said local and remote players.
 4. The method ofclaim 1 further comprising the step of establishing a stake for at leastone of said local players.
 5. The method of claim 4 further comprisingthe step of determining whether said local and remote players owe incometaxes based on a change in said stake.
 6. The method of claim 1 furthercomprising the step of determining whether said remote players oweincome taxes based on a change in said stake.
 7. A method for conductingan interactive casino game having a plurality of local and remoteplayers, said method comprising the steps of: Establishing acommunication link between a smart table and a network manager;Initiating play of said interactive casino game; Transmitting a requestfor wagers to each remote player to initiate a period for placingwagers; Determining and announcing the end of said wager period; andDetecting the value of said gaming object associated with each player;Determining the result of said play; Communicating the result of saidplay to each remote player; and Retaining a historical record of eachplayer's wager, the gaming objects associated with each player and theresult of said play.
 8. The method of claim 7 further comprising thesteps of: Transmitting a request for an intermediate decision from atleast one of said remote players; Initiating a response period;Detecting whether a response to said request is received; If saidresponse is timely received, continue play of said game; and If saidresponse is not received, determining the end of said response periodand invoking a rules engine for generating a response for said remoteplayer.
 9. The method of claim 8 wherein said recording step furthercomprises the step of retaining a historical record of from said atleast one of said remote player's intermediate decision; said historicalrecord associated with said at least one said remote player.
 10. Themethod of claim 8 wherein said rules engine invoking step includes thestep of determining a profile for from at least one of said remoteplayer.
 11. The method of claim 7 further comprising the step ofgenerating an alarm in response to an alert condition.
 12. The method ofclaim 11 wherein said alert condition includes an increase in the amountwagered, a wager settlement above a selected threshold, a request forcredit, winning wagers in excess of a selected threshold or a securityconcern.
 13. The method of claim 7 further comprising the step ofmonitoring a plurality of casino games; Collecting statistics for saidplurality of monitored casino games; and Verifying the odds and payoutsfor said monitored casino games.
 14. The method of claim 7 furthercomprising the step of providing a communication network for exchange ofvideo, text and audio signals between said plurality of remote players.15. The method of claim 14 further comprising the steps of: Providing acommunication network for the exchange of video, text and audio signalsbetween said plurality of remote players; and Distributing saidcollected statistics to said plurality of remote players.
 16. The methodof claim 7 further comprising the steps of: Transferring an amount fromsaid stake to an account associated with said casino employee, saidamount selected by said player as a gratuity for said casino employee;and Displaying said gratuity to said casino employee.
 17. In a casinoenvironment, a casino network management system for monitoring the playof casino games by local and remote players, said system comprising: Anetwork manager coupled to a public communication network forestablishing a secure communication link with remotely located players;A first level network coupled to said network manager; A backend managercoupled to said network manager by said first level network, saidbackend manager adapted to maintaining a log file of all communicationbetween said network manager and said floor manager and a rules engineto detect and resolve problems encountered in playing said game ofchance in accordance with a set of rules; A video manager coupled tosaid network manager by said first level network for managing a streamof video data captured by a plurality of video cameras distributedthroughout said casino environment; said video manager adapted totransmit selected video data to said floor manager, said selected videodata associated with wagers placed by said remote players. A pluralityof casino game servers; and A floor manager coupled to said networkmanger by said first level network for conveying communications betweensaid network manager and a selected one of said casino game servers;said floor manager adapted to associate wager information for saidremote players with said video data.
 18. The system of claim 17 whereinvideo date is transmitted as a series of discrete frames of video. 19.The system of claim 17 wherein said rules engines comprises anexecutable module of computer code executed in response to a selectedoperational event.
 20. The system of claim 19 wherein said rules engineis coupled to said casino game server; said rules engine invoked whenstatus information from said casino game server indicates anon-responsive remote player.
 21. The system of claim 19 wherein saidrules engine withdraws said non-responsive remote player's pendingwager.
 22. The system of claim 19 wherein said rules engine completesthe play for said non-responsive remote player using a set rules todetermine a response.
 23. The system of claim 22 wherein said remoteplayer may define a personalized set of rules.
 24. The system of claim17 wherein said remote player may place a plurality of wagers on morethan one of said games of chance and said rules engine determines theoutcome.
 25. The system of claim 24 wherein said remote player maycommunicate a request to said floor manager to display the results ofsaid plurality of wagers.
 26. The system of claim 17 wherein saidnetwork manager further comprises means for monitoring the operation ofsaid network management system, monitoring the total value of the wagersat each of said plurality of casino games and assigning new players to aselected one of said plurality of casino games.
 27. The system of claim17 further comprising a second network, independent from said firstnetwork, coupling said floor manager with said plurality of casino gameservers.